.To the editor:    
The Talk Like A Pirate Day on September 19 in Alexandria should be ended or overhauled.  
    
Sponsored by the Office of Historic Alexandria, it attracted families like my own. It consisted essentially of going trick-or-treating to various businesses in Alexandria, covering large distances.  
    
Many businesses and museums were not prepared and had nothing for the children. (One good exception was the Apothecary Museum.) The map provided for the event misplaced or omitted the location of many businesses. One business listed at an old address. 
    
Taxpayer money was used to teach children to beg and expect reward. Opportunities for education and entertainment were missed.

Michael Beer, 
Arlington